Art Brooks Sea Company

First off I would like to thank everyone for reaching out to me to make sure I wasn't in Taiwan, or if there, safe and that the people there also safe. Well, no I wasn't there, I was in South Florida at the time showing way to many boat to a client but happily settling on hopefully a very nice 95 footer. Survey to be done next week which will be number three trip for this client, then I can return to pack for my neck trip back to Taiwan. Thankfully the team and factory are all okay as the earthquake there was at the opposite end of the island and glad to see that while devastating the loss of life could have been much worse.
Recently one of my post was reshared, being the boat rushing to be completed for shipment to south Florida which was built by our dealer there, Jeff Stanley owner of Gilman Yachts in Ft. Lauderdale. I thought it only fitting to share the same boat as a finish product showing what it actually looks like in the water and available for immediate sale. Jeff is a great guy and would be happy to hear from any of you that would be interested in its purchase.
I will also be sharing shortly some updated pictures of my current build with major update after my next visit.

One of the greatest benefits of so. Ca. Is being able to cruise along the Malibu coast at 75 degrees and know that you can be up to your as* in snow within a couple of hours if you want to.

We all can now see the pot of gold at the end of this rainbow

My recent trip to Taiwan concluded on a very positive return trip which put me back in CA. At the exact same time. I left Kaohsiung at 4:35 pm on 1/12/24 via the bullet tain traveling at 183 MPH (294 km/h) , and boarded my flight to the US in Taipei and arriving at Ontario Int Ca. At 4:35 pm on 1/12/24. I didn't plan it that way as well as the flight was delayed departing Taipei. During this trip I not only did a inspection on the boat I currently have under construction but I was also able to participate in a sea trial for a similar boat leaving soon for Florida which will be in a future post.

Well this is home for the next 14 hours and 20 mins to Taipei. Kinda like a real tiny house with room service and no shower.

What a great life I have. Went out and enjoyed the last night of the boat parade with my two sons and our spouses, great weather, show and just great to be able to spend time with the family.

Once the bulkheads and stringer are glassed in and cured, the hull is ready to be removed from the mold. However before that can be done a cradle will need to be engineered and built where the boat will be supported while on land or ship to its final destination. The yacht itself is about 100K pounds so the cradle will need to suport it but will need to be built so it can be lifted with the boat onboard well over 50 feet in the air. Once the hull is released from the mold the area of it that rest on the cradle is prepped and painted prior to being set in the cradle.
Each area of the boat's exterior has the interior side of the boat unfinished allowing for a full inspection of the hull, making sure there are no voids or other deficiencies. On the bottom of the vessel, below the waterline it was finished in the mold with clear gel coat so Once again allowing for inspection.
The next part of this project is very interesting as it's the part the repair people refer as thing being installed or suspended in air and the boat being built around them.

Possibly to back track a bit, the yacht is 70 feet with a price tag of just under 4 million US dollar. The designer is Dixon Design Group lead by Bill Dixon located in the UK. The manufacturer is the Johnson Yacht Co. Ltd. in Kaohsiung Taiwan. While going through this journey I will not be technical as it would only cause more information than needed and unless you're the engineer type.
As stated in my prior post the exterior is built completely with different molds for different areas of the yacht, which when connected creates the entire boat. The finished product is dependent upon the perfection of the molds as if there are any imperfections in the mold it will be seen in the yachts finish. Yachts different from houses is built from the outside in, instead of inside out. Here comes the non technical stuff. The hull mold is polished, gel coat, the boat's exterior finish is applied, in this case above the water line and clear below. Next fabric, different types and amount for different areas and then a foam board, like insulation and then more fabric. Once this is completed the vacuum cover is put over the product and resin is injected and a vacum is formed forcing the resin through the fabric and foam bonding to the gel coat. Once cured this creates a strong thick water proof membrane however it is so large it still cannot be removed from the mold until stringers are glassed in and structural bulkhead, walls also glassed in. As yachts are subjected to extreme conditions everything needs to be bonded together not nailed or screwed.

Different manufactures use different methods for construction. My manufacturer uses both hand layed solid glass hulls and vacum formed, infusion hulls. This boat is a vacum, infused hull. Both construction types start with molds for the different sections of the yacht, hull, main deck, house, fly bridge/sky lounge etc. Below are some picture's of how it all starts.

I have recieved many responses from friends and business associates wondering if I am now only working on my old boat's or retired. Well, it is no surprise to many that I will retire when I die and not before as long as I'm doing what I enjoy. This year has been a great year for business and while I haven't built a new boat in more than 5 years I also started construction earlier this year as well. Building a new boat is one of the greatest things for me as I really like taking a project from the designers concept to a finished product and incorporate other improvements along the way. Many friends that aren't boater can't understand why yachts are so expensive so I've decided to take you along on this journey to help you understand. This might also ve helpful for a number of people in the industry as many of them don't have a clue how a yacht is constructed. While the build normally takes about a year, this one is taking a bit longer due to supply chain issues which still exist in the marine industry. Having never done anything like this before on Facebook it might be a little difficult and as the project is already underway there will be post with alot of information and then large breaks in between. First is the designers concept of the build.

Art Brooks Sea Company updated their website address.

Risk and Reward was too big and while Down Sized has turned into a great boat a little too small. She's going on the market, looking for her new home